In an interview with the Viet Nam News Agency (VNA) on the occasion of Prime Minister Le Minh Hung's attendance at the 49th ASEAN Summit and related meetings, scheduled for November 14–17, and National Assembly (N.A.) President Tran Thanh Man's attendance at the 47th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-47) from November 17–18, the diplomat said the Philippines had identified three priorities for its 2026 ASEAN chairmanship: peace and security, prosperity corridor, and people empowerment.
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Philippine Ambassador to Viet Nam Francisco Noel R. Fernandez III |
According to him, these priorities have been advanced through various initiatives and cooperation activities. Under the prosperity corridor priority, ASEAN member states are expected to officially sign the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) at the upcoming summit, providing an important framework for promoting the region's digital economy.
On peace and security, two Philippine initiatives – establishing a forum for coast guards and setting up an ASEAN maritime center – have received favorable endorsement from ASEAN leaders.
Regarding people empowerment, member states have discussed ways to strengthen coordination and cooperation to assist ASEAN citizens affected by ongoing crises in different parts of the world.
The ambassador expected that the matters would be formalized at the 49th ASEAN Summit in Manila, beginning on November 14.
For ASEAN's regional role, he noted that Manila would also host the East Asia Summit, the ASEAN Plus Three Summit, and bilateral summits between ASEAN and Australia, India, China, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
This demonstrates that ASEAN is a highly valued platform for regional dialogue, he said, adding the leaders' attendance and discussions in Manila highlight ASEAN's ability to bridge political, economic and socio-cultural differences.
Mentioning Viet Nam's participation in the 49th ASEAN Summit, Fernandez expressed appreciation for its active support, as demonstrated through Party General Secretary and President To Lam's state visit to the Philippines in early June and PM Hung's attendance at the 48th ASEAN Summit in Cebu in May.
He expressed hope that PM Hung would continue to actively engage in various meetings, particularly discussions between ASEAN and its partners.
Regarding AIPA-47, he said the priorities set by the Philippine Congress were aligned with those of the country's ASEAN chairmanship. They focus on preventive diplomacy, promoting peace and security, advancing economic integration, and implementing decisions made by ASEAN leaders in Cebu to strengthen maritime cooperation.
The Philippines has invited N.A. President Man to lead discussions on four topics: the role of parliamentary institutions in preventing and managing challenges to the security of interconnected networks; and the role of parliaments in promoting inclusive growth, in strengthening people-to-people exchanges and public participation, and in facilitating women's leadership and participation in AI governance.
As Viet Nam pursues three pillars of external relations – Party-to-Party diplomacy, State diplomacy and people-to-people diplomacy, the country has extensive experience in fostering people-to-people connectivity.
The same applies to inclusive growth, as Viet Nam has continued to achieve significant development despite conflicts affecting economic growth in many countries, the ambassador said.
He also noted that ASEAN has a unique ability to bring different parties to the same table to discuss issues and concerns of common interest. He expressed confidence that the bloc would continue to play this important role.
Source: VNA